Abstract/Summary

Recent comprehensive data provided through the DAISIE project (www.europe-aliens.org) have facilitated the
development of the first pan-European assessment of the impacts of alien plants, vertebrates, and invertebrates –
in terrestrial, freshwater, and marine environments – on ecosystem services. There are 1094 species with documented
ecological impacts and 1347 with economic impacts. The two taxonomic groups with the most species
causing impacts are terrestrial invertebrates and terrestrial plants. The North Sea is the maritime region that suffers
the most impacts. Across taxa and regions, ecological and economic impacts are highly correlated. Terrestrial
invertebrates create greater economic impacts than ecological impacts, while the reverse is true for terrestrial
plants. Alien species from all taxonomic groups affect “supporting”, “provisioning”, “regulating”, and “cultural”
services and interfere with human well-being. Terrestrial vertebrates are responsible for the greatest range of
impacts, and these are widely distributed across Europe. Here, we present a review of the financial costs, as the first
step toward calculating an estimate of the economic consequences of alien species in Europe.